Johannesburg – Residents of a 16-storey building in the Johannesburg CBD spent Friday sitting on the pavement with suitcases and plastic bags after a fire linked to a substation beneath their building sent smoke through corridors and plunged the block into darkness. The incident occurred at the Licence Hall building, located at the corner of Bree and Harrison Streets.
Residents gathered outside, some wrapped in blankets, others clutching their belongings, unsure if or when it would be safe to return.
Zenande Mqunqo, who lives on the 16th floor, said she had just returned from a night shift when she heard loud explosions and saw flames outside the building where the transformer is located. “I wasn’t thinking straight. I thought the fire had already consumed the whole building. I even thought of jumping from the window,” she said, adding that she ran out in panic as smoke spread.
Phikolomzi Same, a resident on the 11th floor, said she woke up to thick smoke filling her room. “Nothing in my room was destroyed, but the smoke was so intense I had to leave immediately. With lifts not working and the building in darkness, residents rushed down through the stairwells. Everyone was fearing for their lives,” said Same.
Another resident, Liana Mneke, said the incident left him traumatized. “It could have been much worse,” he said. “I’m not going back to sleep in that building today, what happened last night really scared me.”
A resident of a building opposite, Pamelo Msimango said she was awakened by a loud bang. “When I looked outside my window, I saw fire coming out from the Licence Hall building. The flames were intense,” she said.
While the property manager told residents the situation was under control and that they could return to their rooms, several tenants said they did not feel safe doing so and chose to remain outside or make alternative arrangements.
Isaac Mangena, City Power spokesperson, said the incident began in the early hours of the morning when the 88kV Fordsburg/Bree feeder tripped at about 2.45am, after smoke was detected at the Bree substation.
Emergency management services arrived at about 4.30am and the fire was brought under control just before 7am. Three residential floors of the building above the substation were evacuated as a precaution, with no injuries reported.
Mangena said the cause of the fire has not yet been determined and the substation has been declared unsafe to enter due to structural damage and hazardous conditions. Structural engineers and department of labour inspectors are still assessing the site, and the building has not been declared safe.
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